The Jinn Empire
'The Modern Jinn Empire: ' The Jinn Empire currently stands as the largest Empire, in terms of both territory and population since the fall of the ancient Elves of the Central Seas. They are a devout and orderly people who worship the spirits in all their forms. It is a commonly held though not universal belief that the Jinn Emperor is a divine vessel for the spirits and cosmos to guide the Jinn peoples to greatness and for keeping the forces of the world balanced. The current Emperor, Hiroshki, is the first Elf to ascend to the position. Due to the longevity of elvish lives he has ruled the Jinn people going on 500 years now, much to the restlessness of many ambitious souls in the Empire. Nevertheless Hiroshki shows little signs of age or weakness as he now leads the Jinn Empire against the formidable war forces of Britannia. The Real World Parallel to this is that of the ancient Chinese empires with the concept of cultural appropriation of several other Asiatic cultures from centuries of aggressive expansion. These include elements of the cultures and equivalent land masses of Japan, Indonesia, India and Tibet. 'History: The Jinn was considered to be more of a social philosophy in it's earliest stages, a methodology for governance and expanding in cooperation instead of opposition to the forces of nature. The warring clans of the time mostly ignored it as nonsense until one of the minor clans utilizing this philosophy demonstrated their strength, by defeating a rival clan twice their size. The movement began to spread and when the Great Orcish Hoards of the Northern Planes came in mass against their southern neighbors the clans were forced to unify and adapt to these new ways in order to drive the invaders back. It was in the aftermath of this conflict that the modern Jinn were born, one nation under an Emperor, his advisers, legislators and combined forces who seek to improve survivability and quality of life for all. After a couple generations establishing a lasting system, new priorities of bringing order not only to the Jinn Empire but to all like minded people's arose. The Jinn began a series of missionary campaigns at first, which inevitably ended in bloodshed. Incensed the Emperor realized, that they could not simply expect others to withhold their savagery without demonstration of the strength of the Jinn. So soon more militaristic campaigns were launched and the Empire began to expand it's borders a process that continues to this day. The Jinn fought in centuries of brutal wars as they slowly conquered their neighboring nations, absorbing cultural aspects and new races into their fold. When it came to territories outside of their local spheres the Jinn traded freely but otherwise largely ignored the ignorant outsiders. While a trade route for exotic goods between The Continent and Jinn territories had existed for some time the two peoples still knew little of each other's cultures at this point. For most of their histories the peoples of The Jinn and nations of The Continent considered each other too distant to be serious threats to each other's interests. This changed with the influx of westerns settling in the massive new land masses that bisected their regions and the discovery of lost magics and.unique resources there unknown in either East or West. Suddenly the Jinn found themselves racing to not fall behind empires like Britannia in the dramatic technological developments and new resources coming from these lands. In the process of establishing their own colonies in the New World, The Jinn made themselves unpopular among the nations of the continent, natives of the central seas, and pirate freemen alike, mostly stemming from their harsh penalties on cultural sleights or perceived moral weakness in need of cleansing. War was officially declared upon the Jinn in 2036 A.C. by the King of Britannia, Alistair the Seventh, following decades of growing resentments and small border skirmishes between the two empires. The first strikes by each Empire were brutal but by now each side has largely adapted to the new tactics of the other, resulting in a stalemate drawn on conflict of small skirmishes in the mutually neutral lands of the Central Seas. It is unknown why the Emperor continues to only trickle a relatively small force into the conflict instead of simply overwhelming the Britannians with their full and much more populous military might. Many groups and individuals in the Empire is are growing restless over the drawn out conflict slowly leaching the Jinn of resources, while others see the war with the outsiders as a good excuse to try shaking up the status quo at home. The fate of the Empire has never been more strenuous as it tries to navigate new alien landscapes and new forms of conflict, nevertheless the Empire has always swallowed up it's opposition given enough time. Government Structure: The Jinn Empire is meant to stand as a mirror of ourselves. The Empire is thus structured as one body composed of many parts all working together for a healthy mobility through the world. As such the branches of government are all named after the key attributes of existence, as detailed below: '''''The Soul: The Emperor of the Jinn peoples is considered the ultimate on spiritual guidance for the Empire. He is the conduit between the spiritual and celestial planes and the mortal world. He oversees and is advised directly by all other branches of governance. He is the ultimate authority on what is moral and may pass sweeping societal changes known as Mandates at his discretion. The Mind: The bureaucracy that keeps the Empire functioning, generally composed of the most well educated of families. Representatives from the most affluent and honorable of families serve as voters for the creation and passing of new legislature. Those of greatest intellect are often brought into the Emperor's inner circle as advisers. The Ki: Advisers of the Jinn peoples.and government in matters of Magic, Spirituality, and Divination. Not only do they consult Emperor and commoner alike in their perceptions and knowledge but they also see to the combating of corrupt magic/spiritual forces. Those with a penchant for war magic are often reassigned while diviners are usually overseen, utilized and assigned by the Emperor himself. The Body: The military forming the hard protective shell and expansions of mobility for the Jinn Empire. This branch covers everything from local guard patrols and militias to the elite fighting Samurai and Monks of the , They have been known to offer rewards to individuals brave enough to risk their own lives protecting the peoples of the territories. They follow the advisement of all other branches and carry out the Empire's protection as they see fit. The only one outside of their own ranks capable of issuing direct commands is the Emperor. The Heart: The lifeblood of the Empire; the people. It is their tireless work that allows for the continued strength and of all the workings of the Jinn Empire. While the commoners don't have a direct say in the decisions of governance they do elect representatives to act as their voices interceding on their behalf with those of differing stations. A People's Representative is considered of equal station with those he negotiates with in terms of honor and decorum. 'Notable Figures (in order of prominence):' *The Divine Emperor Hiroshki *Lord Dai ZhenKang (Leader of the Mind) *First Royal Consort Yu-Lin (Leader of the Ki) *High Admiral Ziok (Leader of the Body) *Hondou Katsuharu (The People's Voice) 'Known Laws/Customs:' *''The Celestial Mandate:'' The Emperor of the Jinn peoples is considered to be the focal point for all spiritual energies pouring into our world. The great bridge that spans between the celestial and mortal planes, a living manifestation of the divine and primordial in mortal flesh. His Mandates should be considered binding to the Jinn peoples and above censure by all as they are birthed from a Divine comprehension.. Only a new Emperor may reinterpret these mandates. An Emperor will be selected by the wisest of society in interpretations of divine blessings; judged by the candidate's strength of spiritual awareness, his charitable works and accomplishments to better or protect he Empire and it's peoples, and finally any inexplicable moments of spiritual intervention in his life. A ruler thus picked will maintain his rule until death, at which point another is selected from the same criteria. Circumstances of birth, station, and politics will have no weighing on such a decision. Instead the one most spiritually worthy and practically capable must be agreed upon by the Leaders of polling from their own branches. If two or more of equal strength should be selected their worth may be decided by a contest agreed to by each candidate. If the Emperor should ever fail the Empire in a provable capacity he may be removed from power by a worthy replacement. *The Jinn Empire has a caste system misunderstood by most peoples outside the empire. *''The Mandate of Spiritual Equality:'' One of the Jinn Emperors before Hiroshki, came to the divine revelation that all souls of similar caste are equal to each other regardless of form. Thus an Orcish Samurai is the equal of a Human Samurai, for example. *''The One World Mandate:'' Emperor Hiroshki states that it is the divine duty of the Jinn to bring the struggling peoples of the world together into a singular unity overseen by the ways of the Jinn Empire. This is to regain order over not only the disruptive outsiders but also the lost spirits, as it is only through unity of purpose that the collapse of stability in the world can be halted. 'Other Learned Lore:' *Advisers close to Emperor Hiroshki seem concerned about Britannia's interest in ancient treasures of the old Elven empire.